


where we began

by guineaDogs



Series: someday [1]
Category: South Park
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cryle Week 2019, Elementary School, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, High School, M/M, Middle School, Sort Of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-12
Updated: 2019-05-12
Packaged: 2020-03-01 10:12:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18798271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/guineaDogs/pseuds/guineaDogs
Summary: For Cryle Week 2019, Day 1.Friendships have their ups and downs. That was definitely true when it came to Craig’s friendship with Kyle Broflovski. Snippets of their friendship from elementary school through high school illustrate that.





	where we began

**Author's Note:**

> If you've wondered why I haven't updated anything in ages, it's because I've been working on stuff for Cryle Week! I'm hoping to have at least 5/7 prompts posted on time, but we'll see.
> 
> I made a dumb playlist for this fic, which can be found **[HERE](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/33PnYmTPp1BfF2GPIVlXMK)**. 
> 
> If you love Cryle and are looking for a server dedicated to that ship, consider joining my server: **[flappy hats](https://discord.gg/Mbm4vK2)**.

Fourth Grade

 

The last bell of the school day was the best one. He wasn’t the only one who knew that they weren’t getting much out of Garrison’s lessons, but there was nothing to be done about it. Much like everything else that went on in this town, it was easier to just go along with it, not make waves. Do what he needed to do now, and worry about the future when he got there.

Tugging his backpack strap over his shoulder, he all but ran out of the classroom, down the hall, to those double doors that led to the sunlight and fresh air. He wasn’t the only one who left as soon as he could; the entire school did the exact same thing. Craig was almost to the sidewalk along the street when he heard his name behind called.

Pausing in his step, he looked over his shoulder to see Kyle of all people approaching him. It wasn’t that they  _ weren’t _ friends. They just weren’t particularly close. Things like fucking  _ Peru _ saw to that. Granted, he’d also beat Kyle up when he refused to conform to metrosexuality — but that was neither here nor there.

“Yeah?”

Kyle didn’t give him an answer right away, certainly not the kind he was looking for. Instead he seemed content to walk beside him, thumbs hooked around his backpack straps. Craig certainly didn’t want to linger at school to try to figure that one out, so he continued his trek home. If Kyle was going to tag along, so be it.

“ — I was telling Stan that — ”

“Kyle.” Craig finally casted a glance at the slightly shorter boy as they waited to be able to cross the street.

“What?”

“Why are you here and not with Stan and them?”

The response was an unhelpful shrug. After they crossed the street, Kyle continued talking. As far as Craig could tell, it wasn’t about anything important. He just liked the sound of his own voice, and Craig had known him long enough to know it was easiest to just let him talk.

Eventually, they arrived to Craig’s house. “This is me. So… bye.”

Kyle waved him off as he headed off to his front door. “See you later, Craig!”

 

* * *

 

“Have you done your part of the assignment yet?”

He’d been in an okay mood. Almost  _ pleasant _ , really, until that nagging voice from behind him invaded his ears. Craig wasn’t sure what had gotten under Garrison’s skin to the point where he didn’t just let them pick their own group partners. If he’d been allowed to work with literally any other classmate, it would have been fine. 

But it would’ve been his luck that Garrison paired him the kid who was  _ easily _ the most high-strung when it came to projects or grades of any kind. He felt a migraine coming on. “I haven’t. It’s not due until the end of the week.” It wasn’t the first time they had this conversation, and he was so over it. “I have five —”

Kyle made a strangled sound. “No, you have four days.  _ We _ have four days. I have to get an A. If I don’t, because of you, I swear —”

“Jesus fucking Christ, Broflovski.” The throbbing behind his eyes intensified, white-hot and unbearable.  “I said I’d do my part, and I will. Chill the fuck out.”

When Kyle didn’t immediately remove himself from the vicinity, Craig opted to remove himself from the situation. Getting up from the lunch table, he left Kyle standing there, tossing his leftover food into the trash can.

 

* * *

 

They got an A. Craig wasn’t surprised by this; he might have been a procrastinator but he wasn’t an idiot. Besides, it wasn’t like Garrison had high standards or anything. He doubted little more effort was put into grade apart from looking at their names scrawled at the top of the assignment.

But Kyle was pleased. In a way, it was kind of refreshing that someone who was so quick to anger seemed capable of bringing it back down from a ten. “I guess you weren’t so bad to have as a partner, after all.”

 

* * *

 

“Wait, how did you get 24 as an answer?”  Craig looked at his own homework sheet to Kyle’s. Squeezed together at the desk in Craig’s bedroom, he hardly had to strain to see Kyle’s work. A sharp contrast to his own, it was all neat and meticulous. And he definitely had a different answer than Craig’s.

Kyle paused and looked over at Craig’s paper. Craig watched the other boy study his problem before finally pointing out the issue. “You forgot to carry over the one.”

“Shit.”

They’d barely finished their homework assignments when his mom appeared in his doorway. “Kyle, do you want to stay for dinner?” Kyle was perfectly polite in responding in the affirmative. Craig didn’t think much about it, apart from feeling glad that he was staying over longer.

 

* * *

 

Sixth Grade

“Craig, honey. Your little friend Kyle is on the phone.”

Pausing his game, he took the cordless phone from his mother. She left his doorway, leaving him alone. Settling on the foot of his bed, he turned his attention to the phone. “Hello.”

Kyle’s voice was loud on the other end. “Craig! Did you get your schedule? I just got mine—”

“Uh, hold on.” He set the phone on his comforter to rifle through his trapper keeper. School hadn’t started yet, but they’d all had the opportunity to pick up their schedules and acquaint themselves with Park County Middle School. Once he retrieved it, he picked up the phone again. “Got it.”

The two listed off their schedules, finding that they only had one of six classes together. That sucked; it was the first time that Craig wasn’t going to have every class with the same group of kids like he had for the past six years. Kyle probably thought it sucked, too. He at least sounded a little disappointed.

“At least we have math together. We’ll still hang out.”

 

* * *

 

“That’s not how you solve that equation.” Admittedly, Craig felt smug. They were both smart, but it wasn’t often that he got to tell Kyle he was wrong. “Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally, remember?”

“ _ Fuck, _ ” came Kyle’s immediate response, and from his spot beside him on Kyle’s bedroom floor, he watched him furiously erase that equation. “I can’t believe I forgot that.”

“Good to know you’re human, Broflovski.” He elbowed him, directing a smirk his way. 

Kyle gave him this look, one that he’d learned to recognize as an attempt to give him the meanest scowl he could muster before he burst into laughter. And that was exactly what happened. His laugh was always so  _ stupid _ : he’d snort, and then it would escalate to these wheezing cackles. 

But Craig didn’t mind.

“Remember to breathe, bubbeh.” He heard Mrs. Broflovski before he saw her enter the room with a basket of laundry. “Craig, you’re welcome to stay for dinner tonight if you’d like. We’re having brisket.”

Kyle’s expression lit up as he looked over at him, then over at his mother. “Can he stay the night too?”

Mrs. Broflovski’s back was to them as she put Kyle’s clothes away in the proper drawers. “I suppose so—” She paused, opting not to speak over Kyle’s  _ yesss _ . “If he wants to, and his parents are okay with it.”

 

* * *

 

 

Seventh Grade

They didn’t have classes together anymore. Kyle had shrugged dismissively when they discussed it. Said he didn’t have classes with Stan and Kenny either, it was  _ whatever.  _ But he and Craig had the same lunch. So that was cool.

They could sit at the same table, like the old days, and talk about whatever came to mind.

 

* * *

 

It was halfway through the first semester that he noticed him. The boy with the wild blond hair who always sat on the other side of room with the kids Craig had fifth period with. Kyle was talking to him, but he couldn’t concentrate on anything he was saying.

“Hold that thought,” he told him, getting up from their table to walk across the cafeteria.

 

* * *

 

_ His name is Tweek, _ he told his mother when the other student agreed to be his boyfriend. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the weird feeling in his chest, but it never went away when he was around him.

 

* * *

 

“I’m going to eat lunch at Tweek’s table.” Standing single file, he told the back of Kyle’s head while they waited to get their lunches.

“Oh.”

“So…. yeah.” Maybe there was something else he was supposed to say, but he wasn’t sure what it was. “You’ll find someone else to sit with, right?”

“It’s whatever.”

 

* * *

 

He didn’t notice Kyle at lunch anymore, nor did he look for him. Sometimes, when they saw each other in the halls, Craig waved at him with his free hand. Eventually, Kyle stopped waving back. 

 

* * *

 

Eighth Grade

“I haven’t seen Kyle in a while,” his mother commented over dinner. “What’s he up to these days?”

“I don’t know.” He scraped his fork on his plate as he cut up a piece of porkchop. “We don’t talk anymore.”

“What happened? Did you have a fight?”

“No… we just stopped being friends, I guess.”

 

* * *

 

Eleventh Grade

 

AP classes were a big deal. His parents were proud of him for choosing to take them. In a way, he was sort of proud of himself of getting to the point where he was. The transition from eighth to ninth grade had been a difficult one. Craig wasn’t sure  _ why _ , entirely, but his grades slipped drastically all the same.

But if he kept bad grades, he’d never get out of here, he needed the scholarships that he could only get with better grades. He could at least recognize that he’d been lucky in being able to turn things around to something decent.

It was several weeks into the start of the year that he noticed red curls tied back in a poofy ponytail. Craig wasn’t sure why he hadn’t noticed before. Surely he would have immediately noticed sharing a class with an old childhood friend… but apparently not. 

Kyle was talking to someone else, leaning against his desk as he sat in his seat, and when he turned his head, giving Craig a profile of his face, he felt his heart race.

When had he gotten  _ hot? _

Class started not long after, but as soon as it ended, Craig gathered his things and hopped out of his seat, tailing after Kyle as he left the classroom. “Kyle, wait—”

He stopped, but Kyle didn’t greet him with friendliness. Craig wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it wasn’t this. “What.”

“I didn’t realize we had this class together. That’s so—”

Kyle looked like he couldn’t roll his eyes any harder than he was. “We have four. My friends are waiting on me. I’m sure  _ you  _ understand.” Before Craig could respond, Kyle was gone, disappearing into the sea of students in the hall.

 

* * *

 

They  _ did _ have four classes together. There wasn’t a point in dwelling on how he managed not to notice. What he  _ did _ dwell on was how now that he was aware of this, it seemed like Kyle went out of his way not to talk to him, acknowledge him, or even look at him. 

It was stupid and childish, but Craig didn’t have an opportunity to confront Kyle about it until their lit teacher grouped them together for a research assignment in the library.

“What’s your damage, Broflovski?”

Kyle didn’t look at him as he wandered through the stacks, eventually finding the section he was looking for. Craig watched him reach up to retrieve a thick book from the top shelf.  “With what?” 

Craig was certain he was being obtuse. “With me.”

Narrowed hazel eyes peered in his direction before returning to the book. Flipping back to the index, he dragged his finger down the page to find an entry. Once he confirmed it would be useful, he passed it to Craig and began the search for another listing he’d scribbled down on the palm of his hand. “I hate you.”

Book after book was piled into his arms. Craig knew that Kyle was picking out the heaviest, most unwieldy books to spite him. “You hate me. Why.”

Kyle made a sound of utter disbelief. “Are you kidding me? Are you really so self-absorbed that you don’t know what you did?”

“ _ What are you talking about.” _

Craig wasn’t sure if Kyle was going to sooner hit him or knock over the stacks. His eyes were afire, fists clenching and unclenching as he took measured breaths. 

“You fucked me over, Craig. You dropped me the moment you got a boyfriend. Did you ever think about how much it  _ hurt _ to know how little you valued our friendship? We were friends.” 

His brows furrowed, shaking his head slowly. “That’s not how I remember it—”

“Well, it is. That’s what happened.”

Silence filled the space between them. It was the sort that made Craig feel certain that hurling himself from the second story window would be less painful. “I’m sorry that I hurt your feelings.” The dismissive sound Kyle made in response made it difficult to be the bigger man. “Can we start over?”

“What, so you can drop me the moment some twink notices you?”

“I mean it.”

Kyle’s jaw clenched. “I’ll think about it.”

 

* * *

 

It was in AP Physics a few weeks later that Kyle made up his mind. He dropped his textbooks on the laptable that Craig sat behind. “We can start over. Be my lab partner.”

Craig was beside himself and smiled, just a little. “Alright.” 

 

* * *

 

It felt like old times, but different. They still worked well together when it came to projects. They both aimed for an A. But they’d changed a lot over the past few years. Their interests changed, which meant there was no shortage in things to talk about, whether it was Nat Geo documentaries, video games, or more abstract concepts.

He liked listening to Kyle talk, especially when he was particularly impassioned. He liked that Kyle dropped everything and gave him his undivided attention when he spoke too.

It was nice.

 

* * *

 

“Are you planning on going to prom?” It was still a couple months off, but their high school was already abuzz with planning. Craig truly only asked after one of the student council girls passed their lunch spot in the courtyard to do some last-minute fundraising.

Kyle nearly choked on his chicken sandwich, shaking his head as he discarded it for his water bottle. “No way, dude. Social conventions like prom and homecoming are stupid as shit. And expensive. It’s just a way for the formal wear industry to exploit teenagers and—”

“So you’re saying that you still suck at dancing.” Kyle’s elbow was sharp, ramming right into his side. Craig’s laughter was wheezed. “Knew it.”

“Shut up.” Kyle finished his lunch, getting up from the circular stone picnic table to toss their trash. Settling back down across from him this time, he scratched at his chin idly. He was always clean shaven, but the sunlight hit him just right that Craig could see the attempt of stubble along his jawline. “So. Are you going?”

Craig stretched his arms overhead, straightening his legs out as well. When they brushed against Kyle’s on the other side of the table, Kyle shifted away. “Dunno. Depends if I get someone to go with me.” 

Kyle pursed his lips, and Craig was certain he was finding an excuse to rifle through his backpack instead of looking over at him. “I’m sure you’ll have no shortage of takers, Craig, really.”

“I guess. But I’d rather go with someone I like.” There was still no real reaction from Kyle. Ignoring the jittery feeling in his stomach, Craig swallowed and continued. “But seeing as he’s staunchly anti-dancing, maybe I’ll do something else instead. If he wants to.”

That got Kyle to immediately freeze. When he looked over at him, it was with furrowed brows and uncertainty. “What… Craig, that’s a terrible idea.”

“Why.”

He worried on his bottom lip. “Because we just started being friends again this year. I’ve missed being your friend and if something goes wrong we’ll—” 

“But it might not.”

That gave Kyle pause. “It might not,” he agreed finally. “But there’s still an expiry date. At best we’d have the rest of this year, and next year, and then what? We graduate and potentially never see each other again.”

“You’re looking at this the wrong way.” That was… just a fucking lot. “I like you. Do you like me?” The response he got was a nod as Kyle flushed. Reaching across the table, he took Kyle’s hand in his and squeezed. His heart was racing, but he didn’t want to let on just how nervous he felt right then. “Then think about it. If you want to give this a try, we will. If not, we just stay friends. No pressure either way.”

 

* * *

 

This time, waiting on an answer didn’t take weeks. He’d barely gotten to the parking lot when Kyle caught up with him, running over from one of the buildings in his periphery. “Hey. I was thinking.”

“Yeah?”

Kyle took Craig’s hand in his. “I want to see where this goes.” Leaning over, he pressed a chaste kiss to the corner of his mouth. 

Craig felt like his chest was going to burst. “Cool.”


End file.
